Spotlight on Industry Headlines
FACTORIES THAT PRODUCE SOME OF THE WORLD’S MOST ICONIC FRAGRANCES TO START PUMPING OUT HAND SANITIZER.
COVID-19 CONTINUING TO SHUT DOWN OF BRICK AND MORTAR RETAILERS
CORONAVIRUS COULD SOON DO THE ONCE UNTHINKABLE POSSIBILITY, GROUND FLIGHTS
FOR RESTAURANTS DRIVE-THRUS ARE THE KEY TO STAYING AS COVID-19 SPREADS
A s the coronavirus pandemic takes hold in North America and the world for that matter, food and beverage retailers both large and small are rolling out new measures to ensure customer safety. With Tim Horton’s closing it’s locations down to foot traffic and others in the industry like Mc - Donald’s and Starbucks encouraging customers to grab their food and go and make use of their available drive-thrus to distribute food, while still limiting crowds of customers from gathering. It’s a move that might not faze many consumers as even before the coronavirus ushered in an age of social distancing, drive-thru service contribut - ed close to 60% to 70% of all restaurant sales if they had a drive-thru. Drive-thrus have been undergoing transforma- tions as restaurants turn to technological solu- tions to boost sales. Companies are pouring money into innovations to get diners to spend more and using them now to help customers stay healthy. Despite the popularity roughly 20% of North American restaurant operators currently have drive-thrus, which has many of them now offer - ing curbside delivery for their customers.
A irlines are grappling with the once unthink- able scenario of halting all commercial domestic air travel as concerns about the spread of the coronavirus hurt demand for flights. Airlines around the world are racing to preserve cash as demand for flights decreases after polit - ical leaders turn to increasingly more aggressive measures against air travel in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. U.S. Airline carriers expect they will receive some form of government support but it’s not yet clear what form it will take. Industry experts have warned the drop in demand is more severe than after 9/11 which could greatly impact the industry causing billions of losses just in the U.S. alone.
T he Oil industry continues to be hit on both the demand and supply side. he coronavirus outbreak has led to softer de- mand for crude as people cut back on travel. Plus, with the recent breakdown in OPEC talks between Saudi Arabia and Russian means there soon could be a supply glut of oil as Saudi Arabia gets set to ramp up production to a record 13 million barrels per day. This is unwanted news for the Canadian oil sands industry and for U.S. shale growth as both are about to decline, becoming an immediate victim of the Saudi-Russian oil price war.
N ordstrom has added itself to the list of brick and mortar retailers that are tempo- rarily closing down to limit the spread of COVID-19, joining many retailers, including Nike and Apple, which have closed their stores tempo - rarily to allow employees to be safe at home, and have encouraged consumers to do the same. The retailer announced that more than 360 stores in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico will be closed at least two weeks and the company will continue to pay staff and offer benefits. Nordstrom’s e-commerce platform, which ac - counts for about a third of the company’s sales, will remain fully operational during this period.
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JUNE 2020 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • JUNE 2020
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